Are You OLD?

Age is a State of Mind: Baby Boomers Combat Aging with Bodywork

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, preventing disease and injury is critical to reducing the expected growth of health-care costs headed our way, as more than 70 million U.S. baby boomers cross the 60-year-old threshold. Moreover, disease prevention is critical to, well, your health!

Whether you’re a boomer who is running a marathon or running after your grandchildren, you know that growing older doesn’t mean growing old. If you’re wondering how to stave off the effects of aging, the preventative and restorative nature of massage and bodywork might be just what the body ordered.

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Teenage Massage,

Massage for Your Teenager?

Bodywork Can Ease Adolescent Angst
While teens may be less likely than their parents to go to a massage therapist, there are plenty of reasons why this age group should be encouraged to give it a try. The benefits of massage are well documented, among them relief of muscle tension, lowered stress hormones, increased sense of relaxation, improved immune function, and even a heightened ability to concentrate, according to studies conducted by the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine. But for teenagers, there’s an additional payback.

The teenage body is in the midst of transformation — exponential growth and
development in a rapid period of time. On the physical side, teens may be at
increased risk for aches, pains, and injury. Many teens strain their bodies with
competitive sports, get erratic sleep, and consume a less-than-optimal diet. Massage
can help muscles recover from overuse, and help balance the body and maintain that
stability.

Perhaps even more crucial, teen massage can help improve body image and sleep
patterns, and contribute to decreased depression, anxiety, and stress. This keeps a
teen connected to her body, even as it morphs in confounding ways. “Many teens are
self-conscious, and not happy with their bodies,” says Eeris Kallil, massage therapist
and shiatsu instructor at the Boulder College of Massage Therapy, in Colorado.
“Massage can help teens stay grounded.” Bodywork has also been reported to help
mediate eating disorders, a growing concern among teens.

Another potential plus: A beneficial, therapeutic relationship can develop between
bodyworkers and teenagers during the years when adolescents need adult
confidantes, but keep parents at a distance. The practitioner can become a
supportive, trusted adult in a teen’s life. And the session itself, according to Kallil,
can be a way to deal with all the physical and emotional turmoil of this tender age.

Article courtesy of ABMP